Rio's overview of its tax bill in 2014 shows it paid $US7.1 billion ($9.3 billion) around the world.

Almost 80 per cent of that total was paid in Australia, with $US5.6 billion ($7.4 billion) paid across the three levels of government.

However, Rio Tinto's chief financial officer, Chris Lynch, inadvertently implied that the miner does seek to minimise its tax bill while discussing the latest Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) project to prevent corporate tax avoidance.

"Rio Tinto does not engage in aggressive tax avoidance," he said, implying that it may engage in less aggressive tax minimisation strategies.

"Care must be taken not to inadvertently damage the investment environment ... We are also concerned about the potential for double taxation resulting from this initiative and about the additional compliance costs.

"We believe that it is essential for tax policy and design to take into account the cyclical nature of the industry."

Rio's tax payments in Australia compare to its global net profit in 2014 of $US6.5 billion, and exclude nearly another $US1.1 billion ($1.4 billion) in payroll tax paid on the wages of Australian Rio workers.

The miner reports its tax payments in US dollars, regardless of what currency they were paid in and have been converted by the ABC to Australian dollars at the local currency's current value against the greenback, meaning the Australian dollar value of the taxes would have been considerably less last year when the local currency was higher.

Coal and iron ore prices slumped in the period and Rio chief financial officer Chris Lynch says that is reflected in the tax paid.

"This [result] represents a 5 per cent decrease in total tax payments from 2013, which primarily reflects lower 2014 payments in respect of lower underlying earnings," he said in a statement.

You have no doubt been hearing a lot about the Paris Agreement and know that it pertains to climate change, but are too embarrassed at this stage to ask for an overall explanation of what it's all about.